Los Angeles boasts more green jobs than any other region in the nation, including the Bay Area, leaving San Franciscans a bit green with envy. According to a report released this month, the green job sector in Los Angeles has grown at a rate that is three times higher than the rest of the region’s economy over the last 15 years. In numbers that means green jobs accounted for about `78,000 of roughly 4.5 million employed in the LA Region, or about 3.9 percent of total employment. While the number may seem small, its growth over the past few years should make regional economic development professionals take notice.

The estimated growth in total jobs that are stimulated by the development of the green industry is far larger (more than 10 times) than California’s entire mining industry, implying there’s a high potential for renewable energy resources (and their associated jobs) to eventually overtake dirty coal. At least we’re keeping our fingers crossed. Philip Romero, the report’s author as well as the former dean of the College of Business and Economics at California State University, notes that his numbers are highly conservative, but projects that the growth in the green market will more than double the amount of green jobs by 2040. He also notes that the Los Angeles region has an excellent opportunity to capitalize on green technologies.